No. 13 Miami will be without one of its primary playmakers on Saturday night when it takes on No. 24 Texas A&M at Kyle Field in College Station, Texas. The Miami Herald reported Thursday that wide receiver Xavier Restrepo is out indefinitely with a foot injury. The specific injury and timeframe for his absence has not been disclosed by the school.
Restrepo, a 5-foot-10, 195-pound third-year sophomore from Deerfield Beach (Florida) High School, has a team-high 172 receiving yards and has scored once through two games for the Hurricanes.
There's no doubt that his absence will be a big factor for the Hurricanes against the Aggies. He is the only member of the team with more than 76 receiving yards, and put up 100 yards in the Week 1 victory over Bethune-Cookman. He ranks fourth in the ACC in receiving at 86 yards per game, and is one of six receivers in the conference who averages 80 or more yards through two games.
Brashard Smith could slide in and take Restrepo's spot in the starting lineup for first-year coach Mario Cristobal's first road game of the season. Smith, a 5-9, 190-pound sophomore from Miami Palmetto High School, has six catches for 65 yards in 2022.
Restrepo had 24 catches for 373 yards and two touchdowns as a slot receiver, and had four kickoff returns for 100 yards on special teams in 2021. He played in seven games -- mostly on special teams -- during the 2020 season, caught one pass for 12 yards and returned three punts for nine yards. He can use a redshirt for that season despite playing in seven games due to the blanket waiver that gave players a free year of eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
